


Your Greatest Fear (Or: Snow White Just Can't Help Herself)

by postmortem



Category: Once Upon a Time (TV)
Genre: F/F, Fluff, Idiots in Love, Magic, Swan Queen - Freeform
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-05-18
Updated: 2016-05-18
Packaged: 2018-06-09 06:41:54
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 8,134
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/6894199
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/postmortem/pseuds/postmortem
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>There is a magic diamond, and a meddling Snow White, and Emma and Regina are just two idiots in love, like usual.</p>
            </blockquote>





	Your Greatest Fear (Or: Snow White Just Can't Help Herself)

**Author's Note:**

> ETA: I just noticed a huge plot hole in this story. I'm sure someone will point it out. ;)

_Many, many years ago, in a kingdom far away from Storybrooke (and yet so very close), a little girl sat on her bed, feet tucked under a blanket, her eyes big with wonder and surprise. Across from her, her mother, with a smile on her face, pointed to a large diamond that was held in a little black box between them on the bed._

_“This, my child”, she said, “is not an ordinary diamond. It is very old, and it has belonged to our family for many generations. It is a magic diamond, and it holds many stories of true love. Do you know what true love means?” The girl nodded. “You see, true love is magic! But sometimes, people are too stubborn to recognize it. This diamond can help them see. And, my dear girl, there is a reason why it belongs to us. All the women in our family have the gift of seeing true love. Not only our own, but other people’s as well. We can tell, sometimes even before they know themselves. Do you understand what I’m saying?”_

_The little girl, not quite grasping the whole extent of what her mother had just told her, asked “yes, but why do we need the diamond if we can see it anyway?”_

_The young woman looked at her daughter proudly. “That is a very good question! You see, grown-ups are sometimes a little difficult. One day, you might see two people who love each other, but they are too shy to tell, or maybe they think that the other person could never love them back, or even that they don’t deserve true love. There are many reasons why people who love each other are not together.”_

_"And the diamond helps them see?”_

_“Yes, my dear, that’s exactly what it does. The thing is though, that only you, and me, and the other women in our family, can activate the diamond’s magic. And, my darling daughter, a big responsibility comes with being able to do that. We could be changing somebody’s life, and sometimes that’s not the right thing to do. Also, when the magic is activated, both true lovers have to prove their love to each other by doing something they are scared of. It’s always about having to face their fears, because that’s usually why true lovers aren’t together. Fear is a very strong emotion that holds us back. But when we conquer it, my darling… then we are truly free!”_

***

Mary-Margaret Nolan sat at her kitchen table, coffee mug in her hand. Across from her, her daughter Emma was standing at the counter, arms crossed in front of her chest, staring into space.

“Emma. Emma!”

“What?”, the blonde woman said, having been janked out of deep thought.

“Earth to Emma! I asked you about your birthday present.”

Emma sighed. She really didn’t know. She had everything she needed. Her son Henry, her parents and little brother, she finally had a family, something she had dreamt of her whole life. Her job as the sheriff of Storybrooke, which she loved, despite the ridiculous and unreal things she sometimes had to deal with. Her friends. Her own house. What else could she want?

“Mom, just give me a cake, I don’t need anything else.”

Mary-Margaret smiled. It had been a long road to where they were now. To where Emma finally seemed to be content, sometimes even happy. All she had ever wanted for her daughter was happiness, and she was the reason why Emma didn’t have exactly that for a long time, and now she would do anything she could to make sure she was okay.

“Emma, think! There has to be something! Maybe curtains or pillows for the house? Look around, is there anything in here that you’re missing?”

Emma laughed. She probably wouldn’t want her mother to pick out her curtains.

In that moment, the front door opened, and her father stepped into the small apartment. His eyes lit up when he saw his wife and his daughter. He walked over to them, and leaned down to kiss Mary-Margaret. His hand lingered on his wife’s cheek, and the way they looked at each other was almost sickening. Almost.

“I wish I had someone who looks at me the way dad looks at you. Oh, that’s what I want for my birthday!” Emma winked at her mother, and went to get her jacket that she had thrown on the couch.

Mary-Margaret got up and walked over to Emma. She took her left hand and said: “Silly girl, you already do! And I should buy you a mirror for your birthday, so you can look at yourself and see how your eyes sparkle every time she walks into a room!”

Emma knew what her mother was saying, or rather, who she was talking about. But she was not about to admit to anything of that sort. Not when she was so terrified of her own feelings.The person who had her heart could never want her, Emma Swan.

She rolled her eyes. “I have no idea what you’re talking about!” She laughed and kissed her mother’s cheek. “I’ll see you later, gotta go to work now, Grumpy isn’t going to arrest himself!”

Mary-Margaret watched her daughter leave, and walked back to her coffee, thinking about what Emma had just said. And then, she remembered something her mother had told her a long time ago.

***

She needed a way out. The slimy wet rocks around her were slowly starting to aggravate her, coming closer, moving in. Her hair was sticking to her head and shoulders, and she was showered in droplets of something she didn’t recognize. Her eyes were sticky from the strange humidity, or maybe from tears, but it was nearly pitch black anyway. Nearly. The lights were taunting and teasing her, every time there seemed to be a crack in the wall, daylight streaming into the room, when she got close enough, the darkness once again crept its way back into her body. This game was getting old. Under her feet, the ground was soft, softer than it should be, softer than carpet. Uneven, unsteady. It didn’t move, exactly, but she felt like it could. Should, almost. Her fingers slid along the wall, searching for a door, an exit. But again and again, walls just seemed to end, others were endless, none of them leading anywhere.

Of course she had tried magic. But she couldn’t even seem to conjure a light to see her surroundings, much less get herself out of wherever she was. Something was blocking her powers, and no matter what she tried, it was no use.

She knew there had to be a door. She had entered this place through a door. More precisely, she had exited the police station, stepped onto the sidewalk, and then suddenly, there was darkness, and a sense of dread. At first, she had tried to backtrack, to go back inside. But the building was gone, and the sidewalk was gone, and there was no door. And she was inside. Inside of something strangely familiar, but horribly unsettling.

Then, out of nowhere, her father was there. She couldn’t see him, but she could feel him. _I can never love you the way I love Neal._ Panicked, Emma turned around, trying to find the source of his voice. It was futile, too dark to even make out a silhouette. It couldn’t really be him, could it? He would never say something like that to her… right? She called out, “Dad?”, but of course there was no answer. She whispered “this is not real, it’s not real, it’s not real”.

_Oh Emma, it is real. And I’m afraid your father is right. You just don’t really belong to us. You are an adult, how could we see you as our daughter when we didn’t see you grow up?_

Mom. No no no. Why were they doing this to her? All her life, she had wanted nothing more than parents who loved her, and she had thought she had finally found them, and she had been stupid enough to believe it, to let them love her… or so she thought. She didn’t even know if what she’d heard was real. What if it was someone playing a trick on her? Or, even worse, what if she was having some kind of nervous breakdown? What if they really felt like this?

She had a feeling that she was going around in circles, she couldn’t be sure though. 

Suddenly, she felt a presence, and it wasn’t like anything she had felt before. It was warm, and light, and she whispered “hello?”, but of course there was no answer. She tried to follow the feeling, and let go of the wall. Without anything to hold onto, she felt unsteady. With every step, she expected a hole, or a trap. One foot in front of the other, slowly. After what felt like an hour, she reached another wall. It didn’t seem to be any different from all the others. There was no door, no window, no way out. She turned around and leaned back against the wall. She slid down the cold stone, and sat down on the floor, knees pulled up to her chest. She tried to calm her breathing, to clear her head. She had no idea where she was, or how she had even got there.

_You are alone, like you have always been, and always will be._

“Shut up!”, she said into the darkness.

_Ma?_

Henry? Was Henry here?

_Ma. You know I wanted to find you really badly, and when I did, and brought you here, I was really happy. But now I’m not sure I did the right thing. You were supposed to be the Savior, but you have turned into a disappointment. I thought life would be exciting with you. But in the end, mom always has to save us, and it’s not like you’re even trying. Maybe I WAS wrong, bringing you here._

A sob tore through Emma, and she felt like she was going to throw up. Henry too? What was happening? Why did her greatest fears suddenly come alive? She put her head on her knees, and cried. It was so hard for her to let people love her, because she never used to believe that anyone ever could. And they obviously didn’t. Her mother, her father, and her son, the most important people in her life, they didn’t love her. _(Forgot anyone, Savior?)_

While she was sitting, trying to calm down, the strangest feeling suddenly came over her. Warmth seemed to spill out of the wall, and it felt like liquid gold flowing into her back. She quickly turned, and she saw a golden light streaming out of a tiny hole. It wasn’t like the others, it didn’t look like daylight. It looked like fire, like sparkling wine, like honey. _(Like love…)_

Intrigued, she put her hand into the light, and right away, the gold started to flow into her skin. It was warm, and when she moved her fingers, tiny purple sparks jutted through the air. For the first time since this nightmare had started, she felt something like magic. Only it wasn’t her own. It felt different, and familiar. Almost hypnotized, she watched as the gold flowed to her wrist, then her elbow, her shoulder, and then, when it reached her chest, an overwhelming feeling of peace and happiness came over her, and nearly knocked her over. _(Regina?)_ This couldn’t be real. Surely, it had to be a dream? She tried to think back, to find some kind of hole in her memory that would tell her that she was in fact dreaming. But there was none. _(Regina, Regina, Regina!)_ It didn’t make sense. She was trapped in a room with no lights and no exits, people were telling her she wasn’t worth their time, she had lost her magic and then found some, but it was Regina’s, not her own? 

What was Regina’s magic doing here? Was she the reason she was in this place? Had she caused this, intentionally or not? Emma’s heart told her that Regina would not purposely hurt her, not anymore. They were _friends_ now, and Regina had proved over and over that she had changed, and that she was on her side. But after what had just happened with her family, who knew?

As Emma thought about the former Evil Queen, the sparks multiplied, and the feeling in her chest seemed to amplify. Her heart was beating like a clock gone crazy, and the more she tried to explain it to herself, the more she was convinced that whatever was happening had to do with Regina. And the more she thought about it, the closer Regina’s presence seemed to be. All alone in the dark, the only sound her own breathing, there was nothing else to focus on than what she was feeling. She knew the feeling, but she hadn’t allowed herself to acknowledge it. _You know what it means, you always have._ Confused, she accidentally removed her hand from the wall. The sparks went out, and the gold ceased to flow through her veins.

But the feeling remained.

_Please love me!_

***

It was a white night in Storybrooke, Maine. The snow had stopped falling, the clouds had parted, and the moon painted the small town in a silvery light. People had turned on their living room lights as they finished their dinners, bathed their children, drank a beer or two. Coming from Granny’s Diner, you could hear faint laughter and music, and through the front windows, you could see Ruby Lucas serving a table of dwarves. The cemetery was peaceful and quiet, snow had settled on the tombstones and made them look less sad, but more serene.

Regina Mills wasn’t an overly optimistic person, but thinking back on the day’s events, she couldn’t help but feel a sense of relief and positivity that she hadn’t felt in a long time. 

It hadn’t started all that well. First, she had overslept, and she never, ever overslept. Then her secretary had spilled coffee on a very important file, and since the former queen was redeemed, she couldn’t exactly launch a fireball. At lunch, Granny had somehow overcooked her food, and on her way back to the office, she had almost run over Pongo, who was once again on the loose. Later, she had walked into Killian Hook, who she hated passionately, and then she couldn’t reach Emma, who she had wanted to invite for dinner, so they could discuss some things concerning their son. When she got to her car, she noticed a scratch on the driver’s side door of the Mercedes, and then all the parking spots at the cemetery were occupied, so she had to park somewhere else and walk to her vault. Once inside, a potion went all wrong, and the ingredients flew around her head, and she had to search the whole room for stray droplets of hot pink liquid. 

And yet, now in her vault, sipping on some apple cider, alone with her thoughts, she had to count her blessings. Robin was gone, and apparently, sometimes fairies were wrong, because as much as she felt like she should, she really didn’t miss him all that much. She was almost content. She almost dared to believe that she deserved better. Her mother’s voice was almost silent. She took another sip, and thought that maybe she could get used to this new life.

But then, something peculiar happened. She had moved a chest of drawers in her search for the spilled ingredients, and behind it, there was a small incision in the wall. She didn’t even really notice it at first, but then a thin ray of light seemed to seep through the stone and caught her attention. She squinted, trying to see through the crack. But the light hurt her eyes, and she couldn’t see anything. One thing she knew for sure, though. There shouldn’t be any light coming from outside the vault, considering that it was underground. Kneeling down on the cold marble floor of her mausoleum, she traced the line with her finger, and much to her surprise, her skin seemed to absorb the light. She could see it flowing through the tip of her finger, into her hand. It was golden, and all of a sudden, it seemed to fill every blood vessel in her left extremity. Her skin turned almost transparent, and she could see the gold moving through her veins. It felt warm. It continued to claim her upper arm, then her shoulder. Every single nerve ending in the vicinity of the gold seemed to be in a heightened state of awareness. It felt like silk. Like naked skin, like long blonde hair softly caressing inner thighs, like…

_Her back arched as her hands fisted the blanket beneath her, desperate to have something to hold onto. Her eyes were closed, but she knew that green ones were watching her as soft lips kissed kissed their way up her right leg, leaving a trail of goosebumps. The closer the kisses got to the apex of her thighs, the more open-mouthed they became, and soon, a tongue joined. Bolts of arousal tore through Regina’s body. She was naked, and there weren’t any words to describe how much she needed this, needed HER. A hand came up to her chest, caressing her breast, and finally finding her peak, rolling it between soft fingers. At the same time, a tongue reached her core, parting her folds, then starting to lick every inch of wet skin it could find. Teasing. She had no control over herself anymore, and a soft moan escaped her mouth. When the tongue finally reached the spot that craved it the most, she let go completely, and she was overcome with emotions she had never felt before, tears stinging in her eyes, her hands letting go of the blanket and anchoring in the soft blonde curls splayed over her thighs. Higher and higher she was taken, chasing after release, and fulfillment, and (love)._

She janked her hand away from the light when she heard the cry. Her own. She hadn’t noticed, but her heart was beating a mile a minute. She looked at her arm, dumbfounded. The gold had disappeared, and her skin was back to its normal state of opacity. The feeling lingered, though. For a minute, two, five, she just stared. How could this be? She had no illusion about what, or rather who, she had just dreamed of. Had it been a dream? Or a vision? Wishful thinking? Or was she finally losing it? Why did it scare her so much?

Suddenly, Regina was horribly confused. That wasn’t where she had wanted her thoughts to go to. And yet, she couldn’t quite push them away. _(Emma.)_

Regina looked around. She was still in her vault, nothing had changed. Her purse was still sitting on the small table by the stairs, one of the lights was still flickering, but the air suddenly seemed warmer. Turning her head again, she noticed that the light in the crack had disappeared. Tentatively, she slid the tips of her fingers across the thin line. Nothing happened. _(Where are you?)_

She moved closer to the wall, turned on the flashlight on her phone, and inspected the source of her confusion. The crack was maybe a tenth of an inch wide at the most, and about five inches long. The edges were smooth, like someone had made them with a tool _(or magic)_. It was a straight line, but when she looked closer, she could see that inside the wall, there seemed to be a hollow space. It was about the size of a shoe box, and in the very back of it, she could make out an emerald green diamond which radiated golden light. Not much, it seemed to be residual from earlier, but just enough to be visible.

It had to mean something. The light had appeared for her, she was sure of it. But why? And what was she supposed to do now? If the diamond had any meaning at all, it would be very hard to get to it. She couldn’t get her fingers through the crack, and she wasn’t about to drill a bigger hole in the wall. She looked around the vault to see if she could find something that was thin enough to fit through the crack. She had daggers, but she didn’t want to destroy anything. Her nail file would be too short. She didn’t want to use magic as she had no idea how the magic of whatever was in there would react to her own.

Regina took another look through the crack, and somehow, the diamond’s shape had shifted. It was still glowing and green, but it had transformed into something that seemed to be looking straight at her. An eye. A green eye. A crying green eye, pleading to her, begging her.

_(Emma.)_

_Please let me love you!_

Suddenly, all Regina wanted was to get to the root of all this. She was so drawn to whatever or whoever was behind that wall, she could think of nothing else. She knew that she had to solve the mystery. She had an urgent feeling of being needed _(Emma)_ , and that it was of utmost importance that she stayed connected _(to Emma)_. She took her phone and pressed on Emma’s name to call her. But it went straight to voicemail, so she tried the next best person. Snow.

“Regina?”

“Good evening Snow. I was wondering if you had heard from Emma?”

“Not since she left for work, why?”

Regina thought about it for a second. Should she tell Snow about what she had found? What she had felt? Emma’s mother had become her friend, but she didn’t know what all of this meant, or if she should tell the princess about it. She sighed.

“I tried to call her because something strange seems to be going on again, but the call went to voicemail, and she usually always answers.”

“What do you mean by something strange? New monsters?”

“Not exactly…”

“What’s going on, Regina?”

Regina looked at the crack in the wall. It was still glowing green, but she felt like it had faded just the tiniest bit.

“I’m not sure. I’m in my vault, and I found a hole in the wall. And there is an eye in there, and it’s calling me. And it looks a lot like Emma’s eyes…”

“Regina, have you been drinking with Maleficent again?”

The mayor rolled her eyes.

“I’m sober, Snow. I know it sounds strange, but I felt her presence before I saw the eye.”

“You felt her presence? How? Where is she? I don’t get it.”

“Snow…”

“Regina, you better tell me if something is happening with my daughter!” Pause, then. “Oh… oh no, Regina…”

“What? What’s going on?”

“Listen to me. You have to tell me exactly what you experienced. Don’t leave anything out, please!”

“I’m not sure you want to know…”

“Come on Regina. Whatever it is, it might be important. I had a conversation with Emma this morning, and she expressed a wish, and I may have kind of pushed things a little… without her knowing. But when nothing happened, I assumed that it hadn’t worked...”

“What did you do, Snow?”

“I… I may have activated the True Love Diamond…”

Regina palmed her face and rolled her eyes. This couldn’t be good.

“Snow White Mary-Margaret Nolan-Blanchard, what the hell were you thinking?”

She could hear Snow sigh on the other end of the line.

“Look, I admit that I possibly didn’t really think it through. But if it worked, and that’s why we can’t find her now, the diamond will not stop until it has finished its task.”

“So, you genius, are you aware that its magic could be working completely differently in this world? I can’t believe you. This is the most idiotic thing you have done in a while.”

Snow winced.

“I know, I know you’re right, I shouldn’t have done it. But I want Emma to be happy, and if _some people_ are too stubborn to admit their feelings, a little push shouldn’t hurt? Well, at least not a normal little push… I probably should have tried that first…”

“Oh Snow, will you ever learn?”

“Regina, will you please tell me what you saw or felt?”

“Why, did you send the diamond after me too?”

“Well…”

“Oh no you didn’t! I won’t have you messing with my life, Snow White! Did you just throw unpredictable magic at everyone you could think of? And for your information, it didn’t work for me. What I saw and felt wasn’t something you would ever want me to feel. So you messed up. Spectacularly. Again.”

Snow had the decency to almost sound guilty. “I… don’t think I did…”

“Oh, but you did!”

“...and I don’t think you realize that I can always tell when I see true love.”

They both fell silent for a moment. Then Regina spoke.

“Snow?”

“Yes...”

“Did you…”

“I might have...”

Regina looked at the crack in the wall again. It was still radiating green. It was still calling to her. She thought back to her vision, and she wanted to cry, because she just wished so much that it was reality. She could still feel Emma’s hair, her lips, her tongue… _Snap out of it, Regina, you are talking to her mother… Her mother who has the gift of seeing true love… and probably your dirty thoughts, too..._

“But why? It’s just going to end in disaster and broken hearts. I thought we were friends now.”

She heard Snow sigh.

“Look”, her former stepdaughter said, “just tell me one thing. Do you love Emma?”

Regina nearly dropped the phone.

“I… no, I mean, yes, she’s my friend…”

“Tell me what happened in your vision!” 

Regina sat down on a little stone bench. She leaned back against the wall, trying to process what she had just learned. Snow White thought that she was Emma’s true love. And apparently, the diamond thought so, too.

“I touched the light that was coming out of the wall. And suddenly, it went right into my skin. And it felt so wonderful, Snow. And then, I had this vision of Emma… kissing me…”

Snow snorted. “Is that all?”

Regina whispered “no…”.

“Do you love her, Regina?”

Suddenly, Regina was incredibly scared, and she didn’t even know exactly why. Her face felt flushed, her hands were shaking. She tried to catch her breath, trying to get her composure back. No one was there with her, but she felt exposed. 

_People you love end up dead._

It was true. She hadn’t let herself love people the way they deserved. Because the people she loved ended up dying by her own fault, or even her own hand. Daniel was dead. Her father was dead. Her mother was dead. Even Henry had almost died, before his other mother had saved him. And Emma… she had been through so much. She couldn’t risk hurting her again, or worse. 

She felt sick. She couldn’t do it. The moment she admitted to someone what she was really feeling, the clocks would start turning, and things would start falling apart. She didn’t know how to deal with this.

_Things have changed. I have faith in you, Regina._

Daniel? She looked around, but nobody was there.

What if he was right? What if things had changed, what if SHE had changed? What if this wasn’t the beginning of the end? What if it was the beginning of something good, something special? Hadn’t Emma said that herself? That they shared something special?

Was Emma scared too?

_Yes, very much so. But she’s stronger than you, she won’t be the one screwing this up._

Of course her mother would take Emma’s side.

Regina took a deep breath.

Her voice trembling, she whispered: “I don’t know how to love very well.”

“Regina! We’ve had this conversation before.” _Oh yes, Snow was still there._ “You do know how. But you don’t let yourself very often. I won’t make you admit anything, not to me, but we have to get Emma back, and we haven’t even started to find out where she is! You need to make up your mind, otherwise we…”

“I DO! I… I do. I… I love Emma.” It came out in something close to a scream. Regina’s heart skipped several beats. She quickly put her hand over her mouth. Snow squeed.

“I’ll be there in five minutes.”

***

Emma looked at her fingers as though they held all the answers. Not that she could see much in the dark, but her brain needed something to concentrate on. What the hell was happening? Now that she had calmed down a little, she realized that someone had caused this, someone or something. And that there was no use worrying herself into a state instead of trying to figure this whole thing out.

She put her fingers back on the stone wall before her. Inch after inch, she tried to find the source of her earlier sensations. When the stone became a little warmer, she knew that it couldn’t be too far away. And then, she found the crack in the wall. It seemed a little bigger than before, and when her skin started tingling, a very faint light started to appear again. She put her face closer to the source, and then she noticed that there was a hollow space behind the wall. And something was glowing, a dark amber light casting dancing shadows. Intrigued, she moved as close as she could, and suddenly, she could hear a voice that seemed to be coming from the other side of the wall.

_I do. I love Emma._

Um. It sounded a lot like Regina’s voice. But surely, it couldn’t be? Was the mayor trapped too? And who was she talking to? And why would she say that?

 _Bloody hell, savior, are you really that stupid?_

Okay, this was turning into a party in her head. Killian now, too?

“Hello?”, Emma called out. Then, louder: “Regina?”

There was no answer. She focused her attention on the light again. It looked like some kind of crystal, or maybe a diamond. It was rotating, and when it slowed down for a moment, Emma noticed that it looked like an eye. A beautiful brown eye. Emma knew it well.

Her heart was suddenly beating like crazy. She had heard Regina say that she loved her, and now a diamond that looked identical to Regina’s eyes was spinning in front of her, and it kind of looked like it was searching for something. For her? What if the whole thing was just a joke? What if she was about to embarrass herself horribly, if she let herself even hope that what she was starting to spin herself together could be true?

She swallowed as realization hit her, and muttered “I do hope what she said is true…”

_You hope Regina loves you?_

Neal.

“I think so…” she said into the darkness.

_Hope is not enough. You know better than anyone that you have to believe. You can do it, Ma!”_

Henry.

“I thought you hated me?”

_Emma, of course he doesn’t hate you. He loves you! That wasn’t us before, it was you! And you were so quick to believe we didn’t love you, it was a bit scary!_

Snow.

“I’m sorry. It doesn’t come easy to me. What do I have to do to get out of here?”

_Let people love you. Believe._

Charming.

Emma laughed almost desperately. “Oh, that’s all? I guess I’ll be out of here in a minute.” She rolled her eyes.

“Mom? Dad?” But there was no answer this time.

***

Regina was sitting on the floor, staring at the wall, when Snow came down the stairs to the vault.

“Okay, let’s do this”, the younger woman said.

Regina looked up at her expectantly. “Do you have an idea?”

“Not yet. Let me look at it.”

Snow sat down next to Regina, and pointed at the crack in the wall.

“Where is it?”

“What do you mean where is it? It’s right here!”

Snow looked at her, frowning.

“I can’t see anything… just the wall.”

Regina put her finger into the faint light coming from the hole, and snippets of her earlier vision started rushing through her head and body again. Feelings, sensations, like a tidal wave. She quickly pulled away. “Right, um, right where I touched.” She was glad the lights weren’t too bright in the vault, she could feel herself blushing.

Snow looked at her curiously. “Do that again.”

“Why?”, the mayor asked.

“Your eyes were glowing green when you touched the wall.”

Regina hadn’t noticed. She tentatively reached out again, preparing herself for the feelings to be rushing back into her. And they did. She quickly pulled her hand away when Snow started to laugh.

“What?”, she asked.

“I wasn’t sure the first time, but whatever you just… um, felt... was showing in your eyes, like a film.” Snow held her belly, still laughing. Then, she composed herself, and said “also, I need brain bleach, I did not need to see that”.

Regina buried her face in her hands and groaned. This was just getting worse.

Snow White was chuckling again, and Regina was getting a bit irritated. “Stop being such a child, and help me figure out how we can get Emma back!”

Snow held up her hands. “Okay, okay. I’m sorry. I just wasn’t prepared for porn, especially involving my daughter. But anyway. What do you know about the True Love Diamond?” She reached into her pocket, and brought out the pièce de resistance. It was glowing purple and golden, and Snow put it in her lap. “Don’t touch it.”

Regina rolled her eyes.

“Well, I know that it brings true lovers together if they are too... stupid to do it by themselves. And that it has belonged to your family for a long time. Oh, and that I tried to steal it from you several times when I was the Evil Queen, but you probably hid that thing in your bra or something.”

Snow snickered. “Not quite. I wasn’t wearing bras in the Enchanted Forest. You couldn’t steal it because it’s of no use to anyone, except the women in my family. Do you know about the task?”

“The task?”

“Yes. To fulfill its mission, the diamond has to make both true lovers face and conquer their greatest fears. At least that’s how it worked in the Enchanted Forest… do you really think that its magic could have changed in this world?”

Regina sighed. She had no idea. She had never dealt with the bloody diamond before, so she didn’t know what the right way for it to work was. She shrugged, and said “how did you activate it?”

“I can’t tell you.”

“Fine.”

“Okay, let’s try something. What’s your greatest fear, Regina?”

The brunette’s eyes shot up at Snow. Did she really want to confide in Snow White, of all people? Then again, Emma’s mother knew a lot more about the rock than she did…

“My biggest fear is... Wait, there’s nothing in my eyes anymore, is there?”, she asked anxiously.

Snow laughed. “No, don’t worry, it’s only when you touch whatever light it is that you seem to see.”

“Okay. Um… my greatest fear… I suppose it’s people close to me dying? Because it’s happened so many times. Nearly everyone I’ve loved has died.”

Snow nodded.

“Right. But that’s not really something that can be conquered. Everyone is scared of their loved ones dying. But, Regina… does your fear of people dying keep you from something… like… from really letting yourself love someone? Because you think that you’re the reason that people you loved have died?”

The mayor looked at her in surprise. Sometimes, Snow White was brighter than she looked. She slowly nodded, and managed a pained smile.

“Very good. Now, indulge me. What did I have to pry out of you earlier on the phone?”

“You didn’t have to pry… anyway. I told you that…”

“Say it, Regina, it’s important.”

Regina took a deep breath. “I’m in love with Emma.”

Snow took her hand. “Well, you did say that you loved her, but after that little show in your eyes, any doubt about how you really meant it was gone anyway, so yes, you’re in love with Emma.”

Regina pulled her hand away, covered her face in embarrassment, and groaned. Snow White laughed again.

“Sorry, I can’t help myself sometimes. So you’re in love with Emma. Do you feel it?”

Regina uncovered her face, and nodded.

“Do you know it in your heart?”

“Yes…”

“Are you sure of it?”

“Absolutely.”

Snow White surged forward, and hugged the mayor. “You’re doing great! Who else do you love?”

“Snow, how is this going to help find Emma?”

“It will make sense in a minute. So who else do you love?”

“Henry. Zelena. Roland. Little Robin. Little Neal. Oh, and I suppose I don’t completely hate you and Charming either…” She smirked.

Snow White almost swallowed her tongue. She hugged her again, and said “I love you too, Regina. All these people, can you feel your love for them?”

“I’m still working on you and the deputy…” Regina winked. “But yes, I can feel it. I can feel it clearly, actually. Much clearer than ever before…”

Snow slapped her own thigh.

“Congratulations, Madam Mayor, you have conquered your greatest fear and completed your task! This didn’t just happen in five minutes, you have been on this path for a long time. That’s the reason I didn’t have to choke your truth out of you, you were already well on your way. You are officially less stubborn than my daughter.”

Regina rolled her eyes again.

***

Emma was in deep thought, when suddenly, the diamond started sparkling, and spinning faster. Then, a small cloud of smoke puffed out, and it slowed down. Emma moved as close to the hole as she could, and then, the shadows on the wall changed. Before her eyes, they transformed into words that were moving in circles around the hollow space. Emma squinted.

_Emma, if you’re there, touch the light. R._

A bolt of hope surged through her body. She lifted her hand and held it into the soft glow. Instantly, it started to consume her skin again. And then, something else.

_She was lying in bed, but it was not her own. She was sleepy, and comfortable - more comfortable than she had been in years. The sheets were soft, and she sighed into her pillow. Suddenly, a hand was touching her hip, and she broke out in tingles. Then, warm breath started caressing the back of her neck, followed by lips kissing the same spot, gently. She leaned back into the touch, and the hand trailed down to her belly, and slid under her shirt. Soft, so soft. Another hand moved past her shoulder, and scooped her up into an embrace. A face came to rest against her own, lips kissing her temple. Dark hair tickled her nose, and the hand on her stomach moved up, grazing the underside of her breast. She felt complete, and happy, and safe._

***

“Do you think it worked?” 

Regina looked at Snow skeptically. After she had slid the piece of paper with her note through the crack in the wall, and enchanted it, she had tried to send a vision to Emma. Snow had turned her head, just in case. Regina’s hand was still in the light, trying to keep up the connection.

“I don’t know! Did you share your feelings? No details, please.”

Regina smirked. Snow White would never let her live that one down.

“Yes. I mean, I tried. It was kind of hard with her mother sitting right next to me.”

“Oh come on now, we’re all adults here.”

Regina snorted, entirely unrefined.

***

 _Regina loves me._  
Regina loves me.  
Regina loves me.

So what now?

Emma sighed. She was still trapped, but at least there was a connection to the outside world now. At least she hoped that that’s what it was, and not her prompt to seek professional help. Her hand still touching the light, she said “Regina?”

***

“Emma!”

Snow gave the mayor a confused look.

“She said my name!”

“I didn’t hear anything”, Snow pouted.

Regina focused her concentration back on the light.

“Emma, am I actually talking to you right now?”

Silence. Then, a whisper.

“Regina! I think so. Where are you? Where am I?”

Regina wanted to cry from relief.

“I’m in my vault, but I’m not sure where you are. Emma, are you touching a light?”

“Yes.”

“Okay, keep doing that. Don’t worry, we will figure it out, my… Emma.”

The blonde chuckled, and Regina blushed profusely, and even moreso when Snow started laughing.

“Who’s that? My mother?”

“Yes, Snow is with me. You can thank her later for what she’s put you through.”

“Put me through? She did all this?”

“Yes, she just can’t help herself, apparently.”

Snow rolled her eyes.

“Emma, I can’t hear you, but I want you to know that I just wanted to help. Remember what you said this morning? You and I - in fact, all three of us… in fact probably all of Storybrooke - knew exactly what was going on between you two. And honestly, it was getting frustrating. So I decided to help things along a little.”

“How?” 

Regina told Snow what Emma had asked.

“Magic.”

“You don’t have magic.” 

Again, the mayor repeated Emma’s words to Snow.

“No, but I have a magical thing that… Emma, I’ll explain it to you later.”

Emma groaned. “So just to make sure I’m understanding all this… tell me exactly what you were trying to achieve?”

Snow glanced at Regina. The mayor looked like she was about to pass out, and Snow took her free hand, and gave her a reassuring look. “She asked you to tell her exactly what you were trying to do.”

“Making you finally admit that you are each other’s true love, of course.”

Emma was silent for a minute. She was annoyed that her mother had, once again, stuck her nose into things that were none of her business. On the other hand, she had a point.

“Mom, let me talk to Regina.”

“What did she say, Regina?”

“She wants to talk to me.”

Snow let go of the mayor’s hand, and moved away a bit. “Go ahead, she’s all yours.”

Regina said, almost shyly, “hi”.

Emma smiled to herself. “Hey. So…”

“Yeah…”

_It’s now or never, Swan…_

“Was that you before? The… you know… in your bed…”

Regina was struggling for words.

“I… yes… was that… was that okay?”

Emma absentmindedly stroked the crack in the wall.

“Yes. It was very okay. Regina… is this… I mean, do you really…”

Snow couldn’t hear Emma, but from Regina’s expression and words, she could guess what was being said. She nudged the mayor, and gave her an encouraging smile.

Regina leaned her forehead against the wall.

“Love you?”, she whispered.

“Do you?”

“Yes”, the mayor said, “I love you, Emma. I have loved you for a long time.”

She heard a choked sob.

“Emma? Are you alright?”

The blonde sniffled.

“I think so. I just wasn’t expecting this when I left the house this morning.”

Regina laughed. “Neither did I! Emma?”

“Yes.”

“Will you… will you let me? I mean, love you?”

Another sob tore through the sheriff, then a moment of silence. Then, a near scream.

“Yes. Yes! YES, Regina!”

A brilliant smile appeared on Regina’s face, and Emma heard a slapping sound.

“Did my mother just high-five you?”

“I’m afraid so”, Regina chuckled.

“She’s such an idiot sometimes.” Then, more serious: “So how do I get out of this place?”

Regina looked worriedly at Snow. “What now?”

Snow approached the wall, and yelled into the crack “tell her, Emma!”

“Jesus Christ, can you gag her?”

Regina laughed out loud.

“Regina… I wish you were here...”

“I am here, my… love.” She glared at Snow White.

“Not close enough.”

“Not yet, but I promise I will get you out of there… wherever that is. Just stay with me for now.”

Emma looked around. There had to be something that could give them a clue. But in the near-dark, she couldn’t get her eyes to focus on anything in particular.

“Can you try to make the light brighter, so maybe I can see something in here? I don’t have my magic, and the glow coming out of the crack is beautiful, but not strong enough.”

“I will try. Don’t look into the light right now, I don’t want to blind you.”

“Regina, wait! I might have to move my hand, this crack isn’t very large, and if I want to see anything…”

“Emma, no! Please…”

“Trust me, Regina, okay? I will try not to remove it completely.”

Regina had tears in her eyes, but she willed them back.

“I do trust you. I’m just scared it’s not going to work, and we have to start all over again.”

“I know. Me too. But just sitting here might not be enough.”

The mayor sighed.

“Hey. I love you too, Regina.”

***

Nobody could say what exactly had happened when it was over, but suddenly, the diamond in Snow White’s lap started spinning around like crazy. An awful sound, not unlike airplane engines, accompanied the show. Regina and Snow stared at it, and witnessed how it suddenly started shooting sparks, like little fireworks, in every colour of the rainbow. It lifted itself into the air, and hovered towards the wall. Right in front of the hole, it stopped moving. Then, the light from inside the hollow space and the light from the diamond danced around each other, creating a stunning display of shapes and colours. They turned into a curtain of sparkles, covering the entire wall of Regina’s vault from top to bottom.

Regina’s hand was still stuck in its original place, but suddenly, there was no hard barrier anymore. Her whole body started to tremble, and absorb the diamond’s magic. It didn’t hurt, in fact, it felt pretty damn good.

Snow White had jumped up, and was now standing behind the mayor, who was still sitting, and put her hands on the older woman’s shoulders.

“Regina”, she whispered. “Stand up. Look!”

Through the colourful display, she could make out a figure on the other side. It was just a silhouette, but Regina had spent enough time staring at the sheriff to know that it was her. Snow helped her get up on her feet without losing the connection to the lights, and Regina reached behind her, and took Snow’s hand with her free oe. Snow smiled gently, and said “go ahead”.

Regina took a deep breath. Then, she dove her whole arm into the lights, and said “Emma, can you take my hand?”

At first, nothing happened, and the two brunettes were starting to worry.

“Emma, are you there?”

Then, goosebumps spread all over her body as a hand touched hers. Nobody was moving, but a thumb started drawing tender circles on Regina’s skin. Regina gripped the fingers, afraid that something was going to tear them apart.

Then, in a leap of faith, and after a reassuring squeeze from Snow’s hand, the mayor started pulling. Just lightly, at first, but then she couldn’t wait any longer, and she janked Emma out of the light, and the blonde crashed into her.

“Hi”, Emma said, their faces mere inches apart.

“Hi!”, Regina whispered.

Snow said nothing, she just grinned, and watched the story unfold.

“So…”

“So… thanks for saving me!”

“You saved yourself!”

“I don’t think so.”

“You did. You conquered your fears!”

“As did you, it seems! And I’d still be in there if it wasn’t for you.”

Snow started rolling her eyes.

“Oh, but you…”

Regina was interrupted by a pair of soft lips crashing into hers. Emma let go of the mayor’s hand, and wrapped her arms around the other woman’s waist, pulling her closer. When they separated, Emma’s hand came up to Regina’s cheek, and she gently wiped away the tears that were streaming down the mayor’s face. Regina smiled, and leaned into the touch. Emma kissed her again, but pulled away with a fake irritated look on her face.

“Regina”, Emma whispered.

The brunette looked at her questioningly.

“Why is my mother holding your hand while I’m kissing you?”


End file.
